About Me

I'm a mom of three wonderful children: my princess Safa, my rascal Hamza and my heart baby Bilal. He was born with a congenital heart defect called Tetralogy of Fallot, and with the grace of God has done great since his repair. I have been married to my husband Zakir for 22 years. I work part time as a family physician, running a medical practice with my hubby, and spend lots of great time at home with my kids.

Zakir

My husband, my friend and business partner. We consider ourselves citizens of the world, having lived in many different places including Pakistan, Hawaii, Connecticut and our present home in Alabama. Our latest venture together is the medical practice we run. One of the perks of working together is that we eat lunch together three times a week, albeit boxed meals while sitting at a desk. Couldn't be much better than that!

Safa

Safa

My first born, and probably the easiest of the three, (so far at least), a beautiful child inside and out. Of all her characteristics the one I love and admire the most has to be her sensitivity, compassion and empathy towards others. She is a bright, friendly college sophomore who is both intelligent and fun-loving. Her current interests aside from school include Karate, she is a second degree black belt, and plays the guitar, both acoustic and electric. Although playing the guitar doesn't come naturally to her she does enjoy it, and we are hoping that the determination and tenacity she expresses in other areas of her life will soon rub off onto her guitar playing. She also enjoys debate, and writing poetry.

Hamza

Hamza

He was the youngest child for nearly eight years, and it wasn't easy for him to give up that position. But he is a cool big brother who has taught Bilal 'the ropes', such as how to jump off furniture and how to wield a light saber. Hamza is a bright, energetic young man who needs to be constantly challenged to keep him out of trouble. He is a bit of a math wiz, and can often solve math problems in his head quicker than Safa can with a calculator. He is a third degree black belt holder in Heiwado karate and also loves to be outdoors, riding his bike and playing basketball.

Bilal

Bilal

The baby of the family, he gets away with a lot just by turning on that cute little smile of his. Today he is the picture of health with his rosy cheeks and bright eyes, but it wasn't always that way. Bilal was born with a broken heart, tetralogy of fallot, to be precise, which is a cluster of four unique heart defects. He underwent open heart surgery at the young age of 8 weeks, and made an amazing recovery. The same fighting spirit that helped him heal so rapidly is reflected in his personality. We are constantly challenged to channel and soften that spirit, without crushing it. It is a part of who he is. This summer he celebrated his tenth birthday.

Sammy

Our fifteen year old red tabby, who has a temperament to go with it

Tiny

She was a malnourished ball of fuzz when we adopted her twelve years ago, now she's queen of the castle

Atlas

Our canine furry friend is a six year old Great Pyrenees, who loves the cold weather, and hates water.

Lola

Ms. Lola Cherry Cola is the newest member of the Khan family zoo, a young chinchilla, and Safa's personal pet.

Where this Blog started.......

Thursday, April 13, 2017

Thursday morning we headed out to Destin, Florida, for the last four days of spring break week. Late March and early April may not be the best time to be at the beach if you like to go in the water, but we had done our research ahead of time, and had planned some activities even before we left.

The first stop we made we we made it down to the Gulf Coast, was Stinky's Fish Camp for lunch. The restaurant has been recommended to us in the past, but it was our first time eating there.

We stayed at a hotel that was just across the road from the beach, with its own private access, so we headed to check it out not long after we arrived.

Then Bilal and I let Baba rest for a while, and I took him down to the pool for a swim. It may be an outdoor pool, and it may have only been March, but he thought the water temperature was perfect!

We took a trip to the outlets in the evening, and got stuck in a thunderstorm while we were there, but those couple of hours were the only time the weather wasn't perfect for our vacation.

Another trip to the beach, after finding Bilal the perfect pair of goggles.

Harborwalk Village was another great place to visit, with various activities to keep our guy entertained. Ziplining!

Rock wall climbing!

And lots of quaint shops to browse around the marina.

Lunch was funnel cake. Only on vacation!

In the evening we visited the Village at Baytowne Wharf, which we realized, is actually a lot more enjoyable in the summer even though the crowds are a lot bigger. Still the walk towards the Marina was lovely.

The next day, we ventured out to a small amusement park called The Track. Go-karts and putt-putt golf, what's not to enjoy?

Another trip to the beach, and another day doing some shopping.

Plus a delicious sashimi dinner; the platter looked almost to pretty to eat!

Bilal enjoyed having Mama and Baba's undivided attention, without his older siblings around. But he admitted that it would have been more fun with them! Sadly, vacations as a family of five are becoming quite infrequent, since Safa is at school all this summer, and spring/fall breaks all fall on different weeks. In fact, for the five of us to all be under the same roof is not too common anymore. Such is life, when our children grow up.